Abstract

The credit crisis has forced banks to take a critical look at how they manage risk and has exposed some significant weaknesses in risk management across the financial services industry. On first examination, the current predicament appears to stem from the pursuit of revenue growth in a world of easy credit. The reality of course is more complex, and a number of themes emerge from a recent survey conducted by KPMG and the Economist Intelligence Unit: weaknesses in risk culture and governance, gaps in risk expertise at the non-executive board level, lack of influence of the risk function, lack of responsibility and accountability on the part of those on the front line, a compensation culture too oriented toward year-on-year profit increases, and business models that were overly reliant on ample market liquidity.